5 Answers

I had engineered Bamboo flooring but nailed down. I was told from the get go, don’t get installed click and lock floating floors. The nailed down floor required an installation team and having the flooring in the house for a week before the nail down. It turned out great and was a selling point along with the crown molding my wife and I installed.

My husband installed hardwood floors for 6 years. He says the click and lock flooring is shit. As is the laminate that looks like wood. He’s also not a fan of pre-finished wood floors, but only because it’s a pain in the ass to install. He says if you’re not going to do it with plain old wood, poly, and stain, pick something else entirely. And having an experienced installer is a must with hardwood. You can either have it done cheap or you can have it done right.

I agree with @livelaughlove21 but that being said, I have installed the click and lock laminate wood flooring in rental units and will probably do it in my own home when I replace some of the tile flooring.
Whether or not it is crap depends on what you have bought. If you have bought the really cheap, thin stuff then yes, it can be problematic to install. If you have bought the thicker and better quality stuff then it is probably the inexperience factor.

Hopefully the two long walls you are working from and toward are parallel otherwise you will need to make some adjustments in the initial row. Make sure you leave a gap around the perimeter and cover the gap with new shoemold when you have the floor finished. You can use spacers to maintain the gap and remove them when you finish. The spacers can be pieces that you have cut off when fitting it or rubber tile spacers or whatever. I found that it works better if you get a rubber mallet and cut a couple of pieces of it up so that you have something to strike against without directly contacting the pieces you are installing. But, make sure the block fits the piece you are tapping in, that is do not put a flat piece against the click tab, you will mess up the tab. Take a short piece (2” – 3”) with the female part, click it in place and tap it gently then unsnap it and move on to the next piece. Take your time, make sure you have a good tight fit between each piece before you go onto the next one. If it is installed properly, the piece should lie down flat on the foam padding without buckling up. After each piece, take your block and gently tap it both lengthwise and at the free end. Do a row at a time and complete each row before going to the next one, including cutting and shaping the ends to fit. Stagger the pieces by about a third for each row. I am not that precise but will usually use the drop from the end of one row as the starter for the next, just be sure it is at least 6”. Keep all the drops for use as starters somewhere down the line.
Take plenty of breaks and get up off your knees frequently. It also helps if you have someone who can give you a hand, either with the installation or the cutting.